For the members to be in constant communication and to provide a venue for networking of problems and various concerns, the IPEC will form a mailing list and develop a portal that links to each member country's Web site.

There is a very large international market for ICT professionals to tap, said Akol, especially Japan which appears to now have an aging society, therefore posing a large demand for professionals. The quality of our graduates, however, still needs to be addressed, she said. Akol said that one reason for the poor quality of education could be the absence of a uniform IT course. When IT came, there was not a specialized IT course yet, so when the academe saw the high demand IT schools began mushrooming even without a specific standard for them to follow, she said.

With certification, we are trying to standardize when there are so many, she said. With the vision to develop IT professionals to internationally recognized standards, PhilNITS also talks to school owners and teachers and try to offer the IT Professionals exam as an assessment tool on how their curriculum is faring vis-'-vis international standards.

'I often talk to school owners and tell them to at least try to give the students their money's worth and teach them what they will need to get a good job,' she said. 'I also tell them to go more into problem-solving instead of the fill-in-the-blanks or multiple-choice exams. Make them think, make them solve problems.'

Schools should develop analytical thinking in their students because this is what it takes to succeed in an IT profession, said the PhilNITS president. 'We have very talented human resource in the country. If developed properly, there is a huge potential for Filipinos.'